According to a latest U.S. poll, at the critical moment of the 2022 midterm elections, more than 90% of U.S. voters expressed concerns about the current economic and inflation situation.
71% of the respondents said they were "very worried" about inflation; 42% said that when deciding to vote, economic issues such as employment, taxation and unemployment are priority issues.
The above poll shows that in dealing with inflation, 46% of voters in said they trust Republican people, and 37% of voters trust Democrats. poll expert John Zogby said that when inflation is at a 40-year high, candidates from both parties will use this as a "plus point question" for the sprint, and the current situation is obviously unfavorable to the Democratic Party.
Swing state candidate: "Inflation is weird about the greed of big companies"
In the most nationally concerned election, the election for the seat of the Pennsylvania federal senator is very critical and is also seen as a key battle between the two parties for control of the Senate.
In the fierce local elections, Democratic candidate, current Pennsylvania lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, and Republican candidate, celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz have been defending themselves on issues such as abortion rights, crime issues, Fetterman's physical condition and Oz's New Jersey home address. However, local polls show that voters in the state are most concerned about economic issues such as inflation.
A poll released by Monmouth University in the United States in early October showed that about 87% of voters in Pennsylvania believe that work, economy and living costs are "extremely important" or "very important" to them, which is the largest proportion of all issues.
Democratic Fettman and Republican Oz gave different answers to how to explain inflation.
"We need to oppose corporate greed more. I think that's an important reason for inflation," Fettman said in an interview with local media last week.
When asked how to fight this greed, Fettman posted a comment calling for prosecution of executives at oil and meat packaging companies that “artificially raise prices, cajole consumers at gas stations and supermarkets.”
This statement has aroused dissatisfaction from the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce. “What he takes is a very opposite stance for the industry that creates thousands of high-paying opportunities,” said Jon Anzur, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce.
Fettman's inflation plan includes tax cuts for the "working class" and strengthening the "buy American" clause.
Fettman spokesman Joe Calvello said the lieutenant governor would support the restoration of the $3,600 child tax credit policy, part of the Biden's $41.9 trillion stimulus plan, which expired last year and briefly promoted the decline in child poverty.
Republican candidate: "Inflation Biden"
Doctor reality show star and Republican candidate Oz, who is called "not understanding the suffering of the working class" by Fettman, directly pointed the issue of inflation to the Biden administration.
The "Economic" column on Oz's campaign website is only a short paragraph, focusing on criticizing the Biden administration's economic policies.
Oz slams Biden’s economic stimulus plan is the driver of inflation and says he opposes the Inflation Lower Act.
"Reckless spending by Democrats in Washington has caused gasoline, groceries and other necessities to soar, making it unaffordable for many families," Oz's spokesman Brittany Yanick said in a statement.
Yanik said Oz's goal is to "cut taxes for working families and reduce health care costs" and prevent the Biden administration from "random spending" in policy.
However, there are other consensuses in the American economics community on how to resist inflation. “It is quite difficult to act quickly in terms of lowering the price of goods on the shelves,” said Josh Bivens, director of the U.S. Institute for Free Economic Policy.
"They (government) have entrusted the work of stable prices to Fed ." said Corolla Binder, associate professor of economics at Haverford College.
Although economists also believe that Congress approved spending will lead to inflation, and at least part of today's inflation comes from government aid spending in the early stages of the epidemic, they also said that most of the money has played a role, and the large relief plans passed by the Trump and Biden administrations have basically ended, and federal spending has been shrinking. Norbert Michel, director of the Center for Currency and Financial Alternatives at the Cato Institute, said that most of the major policy changes that may affect inflation are unlikely to gain enough bipartisan support to pass, and it will take time to produce results.
